Page 56 of The Un-Apparent Heir

“What do you mean? How does that?—”

“I’m now Natalie’s heir.”

Sanne was confused. “Okay, so what does that have to do with Keir?”

“Sanne, Keir will be king someday. You will be queen someday. I will be king someday depending on how it works. I don’t want this—more than anything—but Keir will be king. And, thus, everything changes—for him and us.”

Sanne stared off into the waves, his words falling on her like another grief bomb. She was trapped and lonelier than ever. How would they make this work? This was not how she saw her life.

“When I fell in love with you,” Sanne said. “I never?—”

“I know. And I never wanted this. Dad and Natalie never wanted this.”

“Fuck. No children. Never?”

Paul shook his head.

“How is that possible?”

“Ed can’t have children. And Natalie is going to stick by him. I feel terrible for them. We have so much joy with the baby. He makes me so happy. To never feel that… is awful. It makes my whinging feel small. I’m angry. I’m so fucking angry—for everyone.”

“But especially Keir.”

“Yes.”

Sanne squeezed Paul’s hand. “Thank you for trying to fight for us, Paul. I know you will always have our best interest in mind. I… I don’t know what to do. I need time to process this, but… your family is trying.”

“They are. It is the inflexible trying you loathe most.”

“Paul, I just want us to all be happy. And right now, dealing with loss in the biggest way… I cannot be upset. Natalie and Ed cannot have a baby. Your father is dealing with giving you the worst possible news. It sucks for all of us.”

Paul nodded. “I wouldn’t mind if you needed to take some time to think about?—”

“Think about what?”

Paul shrugged.

“Paul, you and Keir are the best things in my life right now. Leaving you at the airport killed me. I may not feel at home in London, but… I will learn to love it given time. I don’t want to be apart from you. I haven’t since the day you called me and told me to move to London on a lark. I haven’t since we sat on this beach and promised one another we’d always try. And… Paul, I love you more than words. I cannot leave you. Never say that!”

Sanne sobbed. Tears poured. The floodgates opened.

“I want to stand by you because Keir needs us both. And it’s not the life I imagined, but… this isn’t the life Mamma imagined—or Linny. We will learn to love our new life eventually.”

“I am not fit to be a monarch.”

“Who is? Natalie said the same thing, didn’t she? But could you imagine anyone more perfect?”

“Not really.”

“We will learn to love one another even in the face of this uncertainty because I’ve never wanted to share my life with anyone else. I have never loved anyone else. Anyone apart from my flesh and blood, Paul. I want to grow old with you—to get what Mamma didn’t have and what Mom was robbed of. Please don’t talk like that.”

Paul wrapped his arm around her. “I promise you I will do everything within my power then. Everything. I was so worried this was the end.”

“Paul, I love you. The end will be when we are old, grey, and tired. Until then, I am yours and you are mine,” Sanne said.

From the Desk of the Princess of Wales-

It with great sadness we announce we end our year having survived great loss. While we lost those near and dear to us this year, we also ended a journey we never saw coming. At the beginning of the year, we embarked on something many couples do. After facing fertility challenges, we sought the help of a physician to help us realise the dream of parenthood.

---